J. T. Walsh

James Thomas Patrick Walsh (September 28, 1943 – February 27, 1998) was an American character actor. His many films include: '' Tin Men'' (1987), '' Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987), ''A Few Good Men'' (1992), '' Hoffa'' (1992), '' Nixon'' (1995), '' Sling Blade'' (1996), '' Breakdown'' (1997) and '' Pleasantville'' (1998).

Early life

Walsh was born in San Francisco, California. He had three siblings: Christopher, Patricia, and Mary.

After graduating from the University of Rhode Island in 1967, Walsh worked briefly as a VISTA volunteer in Newport, Rhode Island organizing tenants for the United Tenant Organizations of Rhode Island (UTO) before resigning to pursue his acting career. Prior to becoming an actor, he also worked as a barman, an encyclopedia salesman, a junior high school teacher, a gymnasium equipment salesman, and a reporter. In 1974, he was discovered by a theater director and began working in off-Broadway shows, where he began using the initials "J. T." to avoid confusion with another stage actor named James Walsh.

Career

On stage, Walsh received critical acclaim for his performance as John Williamson in the 1984 U.S. premiere of David Mamet's '' Glengarry Glen Ross'' in Chicago and subsequently on Broadway. He did not appear in films until 1983, when he had a minor role in '' Eddie Macon's Run''. Over the next 15 years, he appeared in over 50 feature films, increasingly taking the villain role for which he is well known, such as Sergeant Major Dickerson in '' Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987). On television, he again portrayed an evil character, prison warden Brodeur on the 1995 '' X-Files'' episode " The List".

Among the films Walsh appeared in are '' Tin Men'' (1987), '' Misery'' (1990), '' Backdraft'' (1991), '' Sniper'' (1993), '' The Client'' (1994), '' Miracle on 34th Street'' (1994), ''Outbreak'' (1995), ''Executive Decision'' (1996), '' Sling Blade'' (1996), and he also played the rather sympathetic Marine Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Markinson in ''A Few Good Men'' (1992). He played a member of Majestic 12 in the 1996 sci-fi drama series '' Dark Skies''. Walsh notably played real people in three films: journalist Bob Woodward in ''Wired'' (1989), Teamsters president Frank Fitzsimmons in '' Hoffa'' (1992), and Richard Nixon's domestic advisor John Ehrlichman in '' Nixon'' (1995).

The 1997 thriller '' Breakdown'', which featured Walsh as villainous truck driver Warren "Red" Barr, was his last starring film released during his lifetime. In his final year of life, Walsh starred in '' The Negotiator'' (1998), '' Pleasantville'' (1998), and ''Hidden Agenda'' (1999), all of which were dedicated to his memory.

Personal life and death

Walsh died of a heart attack in the hospital in La Mesa, California, on February 27, 1998, at the age of 54, after feeling ill and collapsing at the Optimum Health Institute in Lemon Grove. According to author Marc Seifer, for whom Walsh had narrated a documentary a few weeks earlier, Walsh had experienced chest pains and had an EKG test done that resulted in a misdiagnosis.

Jack Nicholson, who acted with Walsh in ''A Few Good Men'' and '' Hoffa'', dedicated his Best Actor Oscar for '' As Good as It Gets'' to him.

In his tribute to Walsh in ''Time Out New York'', Andrew Johnston wrote:

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

*
*

Bubblegun interview

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, J. T.
1943 births
1998 deaths
20th-century American male actors
American expatriates in Ireland
American male film actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American people of Irish descent
Male actors from San Francisco
Male actors from Rhode Island
University of Rhode Island alumni
People educated at Clongowes Wood College
University of Tübingen alumni
American expatriates in West Germany
California Democrats
Rhode Island Democrats